The Apocalypse is coming...

Kaz Matsui went 5-for-5 last night and the Rockies have outscored the Mets 28 to 10 in their last three games. If that's not a sign that it's all going to end soon, I don't know what is.

Beyond the first inning rally and Castro's solo homer, nothing went right for the Mets. Shawn Green was a double play makin' machine, Carlos Gomez embarrassed himself in left and Jason Vargas earned himself a one-way ticket to N'awlins (or should soon enough). Bad game. Thankfully, the Mets play in the weakest division in baseball. They're still four games up on Atlanta and five up on the Phillies.

I wouldn't be shocked if the Mets made a play for middle reliever Hector Carrasco, who was DFA'd by the Angels yesterday. The 37-year-old went 7-3 with a 3.41 ERA in 100 1/3 innings last year after a spectacular 2006 (195 ERA+ in 88 1/3 innings). He's stinking up the joint this year, though (6.57 ERA), perhaps due to excessive use.

One thing is clear: Cust will play, perhaps getting more time in the outfield if Piazza remains in the picture....

Uncomfortable as the situation might be, Cust says Piazza has been extremely supportive; they also were teammates last season with the Padres.

"You might think with the career that he has had, he might (act) a certain way," Cust says. "But he's as far from that as you can imagine."

From Can't Stop the Bleeding comes this story about ex-Met Bubba Trammell's attempted comeback with the Aberdeen Ironbirds of the New York Penn League after various personal struggles forced him out of the game:

Trammell's mother and sister had both been diagnosed with cancer and on top of that, he was going through a divorce with his wife.

"I've always loved the game ... but family came first," he said. "It was tough mentally, but I've always been taught that family's first and then your career and that's the way I did it.

"Now everything's fine at home so I wanted to go back to my first love, and that's baseball."

But not without yet another bump in the road.

Trammell was supposed to begin his season in Double-A Bowie, but tore his meniscus during spring training. His rehab assignment from the Baysox led him to Ripken Stadium, where the veteran is literally a man amongst boys.

Trammell is the team's elder statesman by 11 years, but that hasn't kept him from enjoying the experience.